Category: Scientific/Technical Items
-
Researchers Claim BPA Suppresses Gene Vital to Cortical Neurons
Duke University researchers have identified the mechanism by which bisphenol A (BPA) allegedly affects nervous system development by suppressing a gene “vital to nerve cell function,” according to a February 25, 2013, press release. Michele Yeo, et al., “Bisphenol A delays the perinatal chloride shift in cortical neurons by epigenetic effects on the Kcc2 promoter,”…
-
Researchers Examine Soybean Uptake of Nanoparticles from Soil
A recent study has purportedly found that soybean plants can uptake widely used industrial nanoparticles (NPs) from the soil, raising concerns about potential effects on the food chain and the next generation of crops. Jose Hernandez-Viezcas, et al., “In Situ Synchrotron X-ray Fluorescence Mapping and Speciation of CeO2 and ZnO Nanoparticles in Soil Cultivated Soybean…
-
Artificially Sweetened Beverages Allegedly Linked to Type 2 Diabetes
A recent study claims that both sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) and artificially sweetened beverage (ASB) consumption was associated with type 2 diabetes (T2D) risk in 66,118 women enrolled in a European prospective study. Guy Fagherazzi, et al., “Consumption of artificially and sugar-sweetened beverage and incident type 2 diabetes in the Etude Epidemiologique aupres des femmes de…
-
Researchers Examine Effect of Advergames on Children’s Food Intake
Researchers with the University of Amsterdam’s School of Communication Research and Radboud University’s Behavioral Science Institute have published a study examining the effect of advergames on children’s actual food intake. Frans Folkvord, et al., “The effect of playing advergames that promote energy-dense snacks or fruit on actual food intake among children,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition,…
-
Outdoor Food Advertising Allegedly Linked to Obesity Risk
A recent study has reportedly identified “a relationship between the percentage of outdoor food advertising and overweight/obesity.” Lenard Lesser, “Outdoor advertising, obesity, and soda consumption: a cross-sectional study,” BMC Public Health, January 2013. Funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the study relied on telephone survey data on adults aged 18 to 98 years “collected from…
-
Researchers Identify Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria in Pig Manure
A new study has reportedly confirmed the presence of antibiotic-resistant genes (ARGs) in manure samples harvested from swine farms in China, raising concerns about the widespread use of therapeutic antimicrobials in livestock and livestock feed. Yong-Guan Zhu, et al., “Diverse and abundant antibiotic resistant genes in Chinese swine farms,” PNAS, February 2013. Researchers apparently used…
-
Researchers Examine Parallels Between Food and Drug Addiction
A recent article published in Biological Psychiatry reviews the research examining the neurological basis for food addiction and its relation to obesity. Nora Volkow, et al., “The Addictive Dimensionality of Obesity,” Biological Psychiatry, February 2013. Co-authored by National Institute on Drug Abuse Director Nora Volkow, the article proposes that drug and food addiction “share neurobiological processes…
-
Yale Study Focuses on Food Addiction Stigma
A recent study examining the public stigma around food addiction has concluded that the “food addict” label “was perceived similarly to obesity, but more favorably than other addictions.” Jenny DePierre, et al., “A New Stigmatized Identity? Comparisons of a ‘Food Addict’ Label with Other Stigmatized Health Conditions,” Basic and Applied Social Psychology, February 2013. To…